The Root

Black style is legendary, and as we celebrate the second year of The Glow Up 50, we’d be remiss not to acknowledge the living legends in our midst. This year, Dame Pat McGrath was honored with our annual Dap Award (so named for the iconic Dapper Dan), but she was in great company, as our committee heartily debated two…Read more...

Do you hear that? That’s the sound of the camera shutter clicking as we transition to the next scene in Shonda Rhimes’ Scandal—actually, it’s the sound of transition for the real-life inspiration behind Olivia Pope, author and crisis management expert Judy Smith because she is parting ways with her clients at the…Read more...

Though the Grammys took place back in March, Clive Davis is keeping the celebratory spirit alive by pressing forward with the second part of his annual “Pre-Grammy Gala.”

Tuesday, Black people celebrated the conviction of Derek Chauvin as jubilantly as they’d rejoice in their favorite sports team winning a championship. They know they are the underdogs. The rules are rigged against them, the opponent has outsized resources and always seems to be playing on home court, but yesterday…Read more...

Integrity comes at a steep price; you don’t become a billionaire by being morally sound. Diddy can’t even drive his kids to school without somebody reminding him that he robbed every artist on Bad Boy, and I would imagine that NFL ownership—where individual net worths can soar as high as $13 billion—features a…Read more...

I’m not sure why some white people hate justice so much when it comes to Black death, but alas, here we are in an America in which Macklemore won the Best Rap Album Grammy over Kendrick Lamar.

Another day, another white supremacist putting Black lives in danger only to be treated as less than a terrorist.Read more...

Derek Chauvin was found guilty of all charges for the murder of George Floyd.Read more...

There are women who paved the way in fashion, and there are trailblazers—and then, if you’re lucky enough, you’ll encounter fashion’s “Oracle,” Bethann Hardison. A model, advocate, agent and activist, Hardison is a force of nature who has worked tirelessly to change the way the industry engages with race and ensure…Read more...

A police officer in Columbus, Ohio, shot and killed 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant late Tuesday afternoon, around the same time the verdict in Derek Chauvin’s trial for the murder of George Floyd was being read.

Happy 4/20 folks! As you hopefully know, I’m the resident gamer person at The Root. In addition to playing quite a few video games, I also smoke quite a bit of weed. For obvious reasons, the last year saw me engaging in quite a bit of both those things. So, on this most sacred of holidays, I come before you with some…Read more...

In case you haven’t heard Spotify’s 10 Songs That Made Me, you’re missing your blessing. In their latest Music + Talk show, they’ve created a unique listening experience by allowing influential tastemakers and creatives to reflect on the 10 songs that’ve left a tremendous impact on each of their lives.Read more...

On May 25, 2020, George Perry Floyd, was alive.Read more...

In the last two months, the St. Louis City Justice Center has been the site of two uprisings by detainees demanding speedy trials and better conditions. Their pleas were effective, as a group of protesters gathered outside the jail this week and demanded better conditions for those held inside.

Rolling Loud, the Miami-based three-day hip-hop festival, is back and ready for action for this year’s festivities.Read more...

Three counts.Read more...

A coalition of Black faith leaders across Georgia are calling for a boycott of Home Depot in response to the corporation’s lack of urgency to pressure Republicans in the state to reverse its anti-Democratic voter suppression laws.Read more...

After over 10 hours of deliberation across 2 days, a jury has unanimously found former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty on all three charges in the murder of George Floyd.

Last month, we witnessed the iconic Verzuz matchup between Wu-Tang Clan members and two of New York’s finest Ghostface Killah and Raekwon. Now, we’re being blessed with another smokin’ hot hip-hop battle: OG Kush rappers Method Man and Red Man.

Well, it looks like the saga that is New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo continues, as now the New York state comptroller has asked the state’s attorney general to investigate whether the embattled governor used state resources in the “development and promotion” of his coronavirus pandemic book.

As you may know by now, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), which conducts the annual Golden Globe Awards, has had to do some extra public relations fixing in the past few months.Read more...

A “racial reckoning.” It’s a term we’ve used repeatedly in the past year, and will no doubt continue to use until America’s structural failings with race and police brutality are reconciled, which...a girl can dream, I guess. Nevertheless, this year’s honorees of The Glow Up 50 have done far more than just make pretty…Read more...

On December 24, 2020, Nike (and I presume the Kobe Bryant estate, headed up by his wife Vanessa Bryant) decided to re-release the Nike Kobe Zoom 6 Protro in the green apple/black/volt-crimson colorway. The shoes, affectionately referred to as the “Kobe Grinches” (because of their super green color and the additional…Read more...

OK. So maybe Google isn’t having an actual party, but the headline is correct in its initial sentiment.Read more...

There are very few points in modern American history that have been as devastating to the African-American community as the crack era.Read more...

During this year’s Kentucky Derby, fans will be allowed to attend and partake in the festivities for the first time since the pandemic began. That won’t be the only first; Kendrick Carmouche will become the first Black jockey to compete in the derby since 2013, per the Louisville Courier-Journal.Read more...

I can’t lie; it’s a little surreal writing this piece. Given how much of a shitshow the pandemic has been, I was firmly prepared to be bunkered up in the crib, smoking weed, and watching old WrestleManias until at least the fall. Instead, ya boy is double-vaxxed up and has tickets to see the re-release of Scott…Read more...

A Michigan father was outraged after his 7-year-old biracial daughter told him that her teacher and a classmate had cut her hair at school on two separate occasions.

Former President Heidi Von SlumLord knows how to keep racists hanging on his every breath.

Of all the toxic traits that white supremacy offers, perhaps its most oxymoronic byproduct is the supreme confidence with which it endows its adherents. At this very moment, someone reading these words is absolutely certain that they are excluded from the group most Black people consider to be racist. Meanwhile,…Read more...

The public memorial for Earl “DMX” Simmons will be held in Barclays Center in Brooklyn.Read more...

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a very undemocratic bill into law Monday that strengthens the power of law enforcement and makes it harder for residents to protest.Read more...

Prior to his tragic death in January of 2020, there were rumors that Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant had every intention of severing his long-standing relationship with Nike. How do I know this? Because psssst...I reported on it in December.

Four-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles is speaking out about her return to the mat for the 2021 Games.Read more...

When my children are older I will tell them that this was Dr. Ben Carson:

The trial of Derek Chauvin is winding down as day 16 saw both the prosecution and defense lay out their closing arguments.

Ah, yes...money. It’s what makes the world go round, right? The secret to any good come-up song—or anything come-up related—is the connection to money and how money can make most things better. Dollar-dollar bills are always on someone’s brain at some point or another, but the ugly sides to wealth aren’t as often…Read more...

As access to the coronavirus vaccine increases nationwide, colleges and universities have grappled with whether they should mandate students be fully vaccinated before they return to campus. A group of HBCUs in Atlanta announced on Monday that all students who intend to return to on-campus learning must be fully…Read more...

On Monday, Scottie Pippen shared some tragic news via Twitter. His eldest son Antron died this past Sunday at the age of 33.Read more...

Have you ever heard the saying, “health is wealth?” Well, it’s true. Since we’re still currently in a pandemic and we are all doing everything we can to not contract the coronavirus, we might forget that if we take care of our overall health, it will help us in the long run. There are still so many unknowns with the…Read more...

One would think that the logical way to get people to stop protesting police brutality would be to reform policing in a way that ensures that, oh I don’t know, a place like Minneapolis wouldn’t be dealing with a trial about a police killing while protests intensify over yet another Black person getting killed by…Read more...

I guess the pig had it coming—literally.Read more...

“Whoa” was a bulldozer of a track—a concussive and relentless four minutes that felt like you’d just been injected with a dose of Harlem, and not Ma$e’s Harlem, but Big L’s. To be in the club, on the floor, in 2000, when a DJ dropped that track felt life-threatening in all the best ways. But Black Rob’s best song was “…Read more...

Psychedelic drugs are becoming much more widely accepted as a safer alternative to common pharmaceutical drugs for treating everything from depression to substance abuse—but who is getting access?Read more...

Black creativity is not and never has been a trend—though we have certainly launched more trends than we could possibly count, or have ever rightfully been credited for. Accordingly, in March 2020 we launched The Glow Up 50 to celebrate our own—the tastemakers, trendsetters and boundless creators who elevate our…Read more...

Full spoilers for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier below.Read more...

Sunday night hosted the 56th annual Academy of Country Music Awards.

Another bloody weekend in America has renewed calls for gun reform out of Washington, after at least six mass shootings took place over a four-day span, starting Thursday night.Read more...

Ryan Coogler is starting production for Black Panther 2, and he’s decided to film in Georgia again, following the first film in the franchise.Read more...

GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.), aka QAnon’s favorite chew toy, is spending her time in Congress the way she spends most of her week: kicking around conspiracy theories and being the voice that no one listens to.